Dates with the Giant Squid
by CheckAlexa
Summary: When Lily Luna and Alice Longbottom were ten years old, the took a potion that was supposed to turn them into a mermaid for a few hours. Something went very wrong, though, and now they change into the half-fish, half-human creature every time they touch water. What better way to blow off a class when it rains then say that they had a date with the giant squid?
1. The Story Begins

**Disclaimer: I do not own _Harry Potter_!**

Chapter 1: Holiday on the Mediterranean

It was boiling hot in my room. Not literally boiling-like the cauldron I had set up in the corner of my bedroom- but figuratively boiling. Though, with the windows tightly shut and the door to my room locked, it was surprising that the glass of water sitting on my nightstand was not brought to a rolling boil.

_Stir three times anticlockwise, whilst slowly adding pulped scurvy-grass_, I read from the instructions. I did as I was told and the potion turned a emerald green colour within moments of the third turn.

There was a series of knocks on my door as I lowered the flames that surrounded the base of the cauldron. "Lily?" I heard from the other side of the door. "Alice is here."

I froze, panicked. If my mother decided to come in, it would be obvious by both the heat and the stench as to what I was up to. "Could you send her up?" I asked, as I crossed the room to throw open a window. A cool breeze tickled my face as it drifted into the stuffy room. "I'm kind of in the middle of something."

By the middle of something, I really meant that I was making a potion that may or may not have been invented by myself. Mum had told me many times that I was not supposed to brew potions without supervision until I had finished at least my fourth year at Hogwarts. If she caught me making one, especially one that I had invented and had not been tested by St. Mungos- well, she was a lot like Grandma Weasley.

"Is everything alright, Bug?" Mum asked through the door. The handle jiggled and my heart seemed to leap to my throat. I prayed to Merlin that she didn't have her wand with her to unlock the door.

I walked as silently as possible back to my cauldron and sat down."Yeah, I'm just braiding my hair. My hands are a bit busy at the moment, is all." Before Mum had the chance to ask if I need any help, I continued. "Could you please tell Alice to come up here, Mummy?"

Mum responded with a yes and I heard her turn and start back down the stairs. A moment later, I heard another pair of feet pounding as they ascended the staircase of Potter Manor. "Thanks, Aunt Ginny! I'll be sure to do that!"

I dove towards the door and pulled my friend into the room as quickly as possible, locking the door behind her. "Have you got it?" I asked, breathless.

Alice rolled her dark brown eyes. "I said that I would, didn't I?" She opened her side bag and pulled out a crystal phial full of dully glowing leaves. "Seriously though, Lily, Dad will notice if I take anymore of this stuff, so this had better work- do you realise how difficult it is to get your hands on silversword?"

I grinned at my best friend as I took the phial from her and began to cut the leaves into small chunks. "Well, it's a good thing your dad is the Herbology professor at Hogwarts, then."

"Herbology professor or not, it still is considered stealing." Alice said with a huff, sitting down on my bed.

I looked up at her from adding the silversword in my mortar."Don't be such a Hufflepuff."

"I take great offence to that, you know. My mum was in Hufflepuff!"

"Yes, and you are starting to sound just like her." I returned to my potion ingredients and began to crush the plant with the pestle.

It was several minutes, during which I had instructed Alice to close the windows, before the silversword was ready to be added to the potion.

"Please don't mess this up." Alice murmured, sliding off the bed to join me on the floor by the cauldron.

I scoffed. "You doubt me too much." I removed the cauldron from the heat and began to stir the blue liquid clockwise. "Now add in the silversword. Slowly, so that it all dissolves."

The two of us worked carefully, making sure not to add the silversword too quickly or stir too slowly; if my calculations were correct, the cauldron would explode, and the effects of that would be very difficult to explain to our parents.

When all of the silversword was dissolved, I placed the cauldron back on the small burner so it could stay warm. "I think that it will need to sit overnight- it should be ready by this time tomorrow."

Alice pushed her blonde hair out of her face. "Are you sure that this will work?"

I bit my lip. So many things could go wrong with this potion: we could be stuck in the forms permanently- though the boomslang skin should counteract that; we could mutate into some half fish, half human creature that was not at all reminiscent of a mermaid- but that was what the horklump juice would protect us from; or we could simply die- in that case, hopefully we would be able to take a bezoar before we snuffed it. "My arithmancy tells me that we should be fine."

Tomorrow evening, we (that is to say the Potters, the Longbottoms, Uncle Ron and Aunt Hermione, and their two kids) would be on the beaches of Spain. We were staying in a house right by a private beach that overlooked the Mediterranean Sea. I sincerely hoped that the potion was ready before we left, because I'm wasn't sure if I could convince Mum to let me bring a cauldron with me on holiday.

Alice sighed happily as she flopped backwards onto my bed. "And by then, the two of us will be swimming along the bottom of the Mediterranean. Well," she said, eyeing my unpacked travelling trunk, "at least I will be. You haven't even started packing yet."

When I grinned sheepishly at her, Alice sat up an fixed me with her best glare. "Lily Luna Potter, I will not help you pack."

"Pretty please, Alice?"

"Absolutely not. It's your own fault that you haven't packed, not mine."

"But Alice, I've been so busy with this potion that I just haven't had any time to pack yet." I fixed her with my best puppy dog eyes. "And I just wanted to make you happy!"

Alice stuttered for a moment before saying, "Fine I'll help. I'll have you know, that you have the makings for an excellent Slytherin."

I rolled my eyes at her comment. "Yeah, yeah. Just make sure that my socks don't match when you pair them up."

"Yes," Alice said, sarcasm infused with her voice. "We can't have you looking normal. That would be a disaster."

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~Dates with the Giant Squid~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

"Are you positive this will work?" Alice asked for the millionth time as we stood facing the Mediterranean sea. Waves were crashing on the shore, and the water came right up to our toes

"You flatter me with the amount of faith you have in my potion skills." I said, as I unscrewed the phial that held the potion. "But if it will make you feel better, I'll take it first, and you can have a bezoar at the ready."

Alice looked like she wanted to object. "Maybe we shouldn't do this, Lily. Mummy and Daddy might get worried if we disappear for a few hours, and that's if your potion doesn't kill us."

I looked sharply at my best friend. "You are the one who wanted to be a mermaid."

Alice held up her hands, "I know, I know! But Lily, this could be dangerous. We might-"

I lifted the phial to her. "Cheers!" I said, interrupting her rant. In one swift movement, I downed the contents of the crystal phial. Putting the cap back on the container, and looked at my friend. "How do I look?"

"Human." Alice said, with pursed lips. "Though very much alive."

I shrugged my shoulders and handed her another phial. "My guess is that we have about an hour as a mermaid once we touch the water."

Biting her lip, Alice looked down at the glowing blue liquid. "Does it taste bad?"

I had to roll my eyes. "No, not if you drink it fast enough. Now, stop wasting time. I want to go swimming."

Alice took a deep breath and lifted the phial to her lips. After she had taken the potion, she handed me back the phial, which I put in my sack by our towels. Kicking off our sandals and taking off our t-shirts, we ran back to the water, hand in hand.

"Together?" Alice asked as we faced the waves.

I took her hand. "As always." Together, we dove into the warm water of the sea.

When we resurfaced, we looked down at our legs, hoping to see a scale covered tail in their place.

"Maybe it needs more time to work?" Alice suggested hopefully.

"Yeah," I said, disappointed. "Maybe."

Alice reached over and gave me a hug. "Not every potion will work out, Lily Bug. At least you didn't kill us."

I had to smile at her words. "You always look for the bright side, don't you."

Alice laughed loudly as she pulled away. "You know me too well. Now, I bet I can find a prettier fish than you!"

"Ten points goes to the one who finds a starfish!" I said, diving under the water.

Alice was right- there was no use crying over a dud potion; especially not when one was in such a beautiful place as we were.

We played in the water all afternoon, and time in Spain continued in the same way.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~Dates with the Giant Squid~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Around eight that evening on our last night in Spain, both Alice and I began to run fevers, and began to vomit our dinners. Our skin had turned bright pink, and it looked like we had a very bad sunburn.

My dad pushed my frizzy red hair out of my face as he tucked me into bed in the room I was sharing with Alice. "It looks like you got too much sun, Bug."

He gave me a kiss, and got up to turn off the light. "If you need anything, Mum and I are just down the hall. Sleep well. You too, Alice."

Alice murmured a goodnight to Dad. When the door was completely closed, she rolled over to look at me. "You don't think it could be the potion, do you?" Alice asked, panic beginning to overtake her. "Do you think we should tell them about it?"

I shook my head, "And get in trouble? No, that was days ago. I think Dad is right- it could just be sunstroke. We were out in the sun all day."

"But if we die-"

"We won't die, Alice. That potion was a dud, like you said. Just try to get some sleep, okay?"

But sleep proved hard to get that night. The two of us were very uncomfortable with our burnt skin, and the pain in our stomachs had intensified. We squirmed in agony, feeling as if we had swallowed fire. Sometime in the early hours of the morning, our fever broke and we were able to fall into an uneasy sleep.

Aunt Hannah was the one to wake us up the next morning. "Come on, girls. I know you don't feel well, but we need to pack up. Daddy has to be back at the school this evening to get ready for the new term, and we still need to go to Diagon Alley to pick up school supplies for your siblings, Rosie, and Lily's brothers."

With much grumbling, Alice and I rolled out of bed. "I'll take a shower first." Alice said. "Merlin knows how long it will take you to pack your clothes up."

It was a testament to how tired I was that I didn't even complain as Alice headed to the adjoined bath. I heard the water start as I slowly started to fold up my clothes and put them in my trunk.

A loud CRASH came from the bathroom behind me, startling me as I rolled up a pair of socks. I dropped the clothes and ran towards the door.

"Alice?" I asked, pounding on the door. "Are you okay? I'm coming in!"

I yanked open the door, and was greeted with a very peculiar sight. Alice was lying down on the ground, shower curtain tangled around her body. The shower was still running, covering the floor with water.

"Alice? Are you alright?" I asked, taking a step towards my best friend.

"Don't come any closer," Alice said, sitting up, trying to untangle herself.

I had to laugh. "Alice, I know you're naked, but let me help-"

"It's not that." Alice said, finally pulling the curtain away from her body. "It's that water." My eyes caught a shinning, scaly, glowing blue tail, right were Alice's legs should've been. "That potion wasn't a dud."

**(A/N: Hey readers! I really hope you enjoyed this, of what I hope, will be a series about Lily Luna and her friend Alice Longbottom. I am obsessed with _Harry Potter_, and I have always loved stories about Lily Luna, and I love mermaids, so I figured "Why not combine them and write your own!" I really hope you enjoyed this first chapter! If you want more, please review [feel free to tell me what you want to read, ideas about what will happen, questions if you are confused, or just constructive criticism!] and follow my story! Happy reading!)**


	2. The Wand Chooses the Mermaid

**Disclaimer: I don't own **_**Harry Potter**_

Chapter 2: The Wand Chooses the Mermaid

**One Year Later**

With a great _WHOOSH_, I stumbled out of the Floo, landing safely in my brother's arms.

"Careful there, Bug." James said as he started to brush soot off of my cloak. "You've got something on your face." He licked his thumb and reached over to wipe the dirt off of my face.

I dodged his finger, "Gross, Jamie!" Not only did I not want my brother's saliva on my face, but I had no intention of popping a tail in the middle of the Leaky Cauldron. Not that James knew about the tail part, of course. Nobody knew about the tail I, or Alice, grew.

After Alice and I found out that the potion we took the year previously turned us into mermaids moments after touching water, we avoided all forms of water like the plague. From what we could tell, the only liquids that wouldn't cause our tails to appear were our own bodily fluids-like tears or blood.

Dad came through the Floo next, followed closely by Albus, then Mum.

"When did you say that Ron and Hermione would get here?" Mum asked as she looked around the pub, as if expecting her brother to pop out any second. She walked over to Dad and threaded her fingers through his.

Before Dad could respond, however, a familiar head of blonde hair appeared behind the bar. "Harry! Ginny! How are you?"

Aunt Hannah, who was not really my aunt, was one of the coolest people ever- right up there with Uncle Charlie and Aunt Luna- and I'm not just saying that because she's my best friend's mum. She ran the Leaky Cauldron, and as a result, always brought over Butterbeer.

"We're doing alright. We're going to get school stuff for the kids. I heard about Neville's promotion! Tell him that we said congrats for us!" Mum said, walking over to hug Aunt Hannah.

My parents started chatting with Aunt Hannah, which I tuned out quickly. Adults always had boring conversations. I turned towards my brothers, only to find that James had wandered off towards one of his school friends, and Albus had pulled a book out of his bag.

I walked over to where my parents were at the bar, and pulled myself up onto a stool.

"Hello, Miss Lily!" Aunt Hannah said when she noticed me. "Are you looking for your partner in crime?"

I gave Aunt Hannah a cheeky smile. "It's only a crime if you get caught, Auntie Hannah."

The adults laughed in that weird way adults do when a kid says something humorous. "Well, I'm afraid that she's with her father in Diagon Alley." She turned to my parents and explained, "With so much more to get than Frank or Charlotte, Neville took her out earlier. They should be back in a couple of ours- he said they'd be back by lunch time to collect the other two- I can't leave of course-"

I zoned out of the conversation again, and opted to follow Albus' example by pulling out a book from my bag. I was so interested in the Golpalott's Third Law, that I didn't notice that the Weasley family had arrived 20 minutes later until Hugo had snuck up on me and tapped my shoulder.

I gave a squeak of surprise, and nearly fell off the bar stool as I turned to face my cousin.

"Hiya, Lil's!" Hugo said, grinning from freckle-y ear to freckle-y ear. "What are you reading?"

I was tempted to hit him in the face with the heavy tome I had been reading, but I knew Mum would disapprove of such behaviour. Instead, I simply showed the cover to the ginger boy standing in front of me.

"_Advanced Potions Making_? You're reading a textbook? Isn't that for N.E.W.T. level potions?"

I nodded, "It's one of Teddy's old books."

Hugo looked at the book in semi-disgust. "Do you even understand what the book says?"

"No," I replied, unable to hold back my annoyance with my cousin. "I just like to carry it around so that I look smart."

Hugo raised his eyebrows in surprise. "Really?"

"No, not really. I understand exactly what it says." I laughed, hoping off the stool. "Mummy, can we go now? I want to go get my wand!"

Dad laughed at my excitement, and bent down to pick me up. "Patience, Lily-Bug. Besides, don't you want to go get your wand with Alice?"

I huffed in annoyance. "Of course I do, Daddy! But the sooner we get the boring things out of the way, the sooner I can get my wand!"

The adults laughed. "Well, I can't argue with that logic." Dad said, kissing my cheek. "We had better get started. We'll be back later, Hannah."

Waving to Aunt Hannah, Dad and Mum walked through the back door to the alley way behind the pub, calling my brothers to follow.

"I think it would be best if we split up," Aunt Hermione said, appearing beside us. She took out her wand and tapped the brick that would reveal the alley. "So that we can get this done as quickly as possible. It's going to be a zoo today with all of the back to school shopping."

Mum nodded in agreement. "James needs new robes- I swear he's grown at least a foot over the summer. I can take Lily, Hugo and James to Madam Malkin's."

Aunt Hermione looked around at our group and pointed to Uncle Ron and Dad. "Harry, you and Ron can go get the books with Albus and Rose."

James snorted. "Aunt Hermione, if you wanted this trip to be short, I would not send Albus and Rosie to Flourish and Blotts."

Albus scowled at James, but didn't retaliate. Albus wasn't in Gryffindor with James, as he was much more studious than our older brother. Instead, Albus had been sorted into Ravenclaw two years previously, along with our cousin Rose.

Aunt Hermione either didn't hear James, or just decided to ignore his comment. "Then, Love," she continued. "Maybe you could take go to get more parchment and quills. Some ink, too. We can meet up at the apothecary in about an hour."

Daddy laughed and leaned over to give Aunt Hermione a kiss on the cheek. "'Mione, relax. We've got all day." Dad finally let me down onto the ground. "We'll meet you in an hour at the apothecary, Bug. Then we can get lunch and meet up with Alice. Deal?"

I grinned at my father and hugged him around the middle. "Deal!" Waving, I skipped to Mum and grabbed her hand. She dragged me towards Madam Malkin's to get one of my least favourite shopping done- robe fitting.

Even though my dad had been raised in a muggle household, both of my parents liked to wear robes on a daily basis, meaning all of us kids had to wear robes pretty much every day too. I never really minded it, but the process of getting the robes properly hemmed and pinned and fitted to your body _just _right, took forever. I was finished getting my school robes within a relatively short amount of time. Hugo, however, was a completely different story.

"Please stop fidgeting, Mr Weasley, or the pins will stick you." The wizard that was fitting his robes said. "You're almost finished, so please stop moving or we will have to start over."

Hugo looked over at me from where he was getting fitted and gave me a suffering look. "How are you finished already?" He asked me.

I shrugged my shoulders. "Probably because I don't twitch like a hippogriff given espresso every few seconds."

Hugo groaned loudly, the yelped as a needle pricked his skin.

The wizard muttered something that sounded suspiciously like, "I told you so," as he readjusted the hem on Hugo's right sleeve.

"Hugo, you're acting like this is killing you." Aunt Hermione said.

"I think it might be, Mum." He responded with a heavy sigh. "Can Lily and I go look at owls when we are finished?"

My mum looked at her watch, then looked over at James who had just jumped onto the raised platform to be fitted. "Sure, why not." When Aunt Hermione looked like she was about to protest, Mum continued, "You can go with them, 'Mione, and James and I will be along later."

Aunt Hermione nodded and fifteen minutes later, the three of us were walking towards Magical Mengerie, to look at animals. The moment we entered the loud, hectic shop, Hugo was attracted to a small spotted wood owl, and dragged his mother after him. I continued to browse through the owls, stopping to inspect the different animals that lined the shelves of the store every so often.

Near the back corner of the shop, I felt a familiar tingle in the pit of stomach that always occurred when I was near water. Rounding the corner of an aisle that showcased a collection of singing hermit crab shells, I came face to face with the source of the sensation- the entire back wall of the store held gallons of water in a large container with fish; however, these weren't just any fish. The fish that were being sold in Magical Mengerie were very angry.

One might ask how I knew the fish were angry, or how fish could even be angry. The answer to the former was not quite so simple: from what either Alice or I could tell, one of the perks of being a mermaid was being able to attract and talk to aquatic life. Something about our presence was like a magnate to marine creatures, causing them to seek us out and talk to us. The speech, however, wasn't really speech at all as it didn't consist of anything much like words, but instead impressions, images and sounds.

The answer to the later question was quite simple, on the contrary: fish had feelings just like humans. The current source of these particular fish's vexation was something that most fish owners never really took into account: the lighting of aquariums. Now, I won't bore you with the details on the proper lighting of a fish's habitat, so I'll just skip to the part where things don't go as planned for me.

I was approaching the aquarium slowly, looking for a way to somehow shield the poor aquatic creatures when life decided that it was time for me to learn another important lesson on being a mermaid: fish that had been bred in captivity had most likely never met a mermaid before, and approaching a fish would cause them to go, for lack of a better word, berserk.

The moment I came within a metre of the aquarium tanks, fish began jumping out of the water towards me. I did the only thing that a human would do when fish landed in their hair and soaked their clothes.

Screaming bloody murder, I ran for the first broom cupboard I could find, and managed to lock the door just heartbeats before I lost my balance and crumbled to the ground, my having fused together to form a blue tail.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~Dates with the Giant Squid~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

"So you just sat there, in the cupboard, for twenty minutes." Alice asked, doing a lousy job of suppressing the smile that threatened to overtake her face.

"Well, what was I supposed to do?" I hissed, pretending to read the Leaky Cauldron's lunch menu even though my food had all ready arrived. "Pop a tail in the pet store? I can see the headlines of the _Daily Prophet_ now ''Harry Potter's Half-Human Daughter.'"

Alice laughed at this. "You are so dramatic, Lily."

I folded up the menu and hit my friend over the head with it. "What would have you suggested I done, then?"

"Well," Alice said quietly as her dad walked by. "Not going near the fish would've been a good place to start."

"Oh, I must've missed the 'Beware Domesticated Fish or they Go Nuts' section in the _Half-Breed Handbook_," I hissed sarcastically. "Actually, a handbook would be sort of useful. Maybe we can find one at Hogwarts? It certainly wouldn't hurt to look."

"What are you looking for, Lily?" Uncle Ron said as he turned to face us.

"How to perform the jinx on James that would make him able to only speak in bad haikus for a few days. I know I heard of one somewhere." I lied. Lying had become part of my daily routine since becoming a mermaid.

"Hey!" James yelped, spinning to face us as well.

"Hay is for horses," I replied childishly, sticking my tongue out at my eldest brother.

Uncle Neville intervened before James could reply. "Well, Lily, I think a spell is only one part of the equation if you and Alice wish to terrorise James."

Alice's eyes lit up as she registered what her father was saying. "You mean we can go get our wands now?"

Aunt Hermione shrugged. "I don't see why not. We've got everything else on your school lists-"

"Apart from a pet for Lily," Hugo muttered with a sly grin.

"- I think we can easily swing by Ollivander's to buy some wands."

"Anybody who already has a wand, stay here. The rest of you lot, let's go!" Uncle Ron said, hopping up from his seat and heading through the barrier in the direction of the wand shop.

Alice, Hugo, and I trotted along behind Uncle Ron and at least one of our respective parents through Diagon Alley. The little bell above the door tinkled as our group shuffled into the dusty store. We didn't have to wait long as a man in his 50s rounded the corner of one of the shelves that were filled with boxes of wands.

"Hello," he said in a cherry voice. "Here to buy your first wand?" The three of us nodded as the man watched us through his silvery gray eyes. "I remember selling your brother and sister their wands," he said, pointing to Alice.

"Black walnut and phoenix feather for your brother," Mr Ollivander said as he began to survey the boxes on the shelves. "Cedar and dragon heartstring for your sister. Which is your wand arm, Miss Longbottom?"

"My right," Alice said as she approached the counter.

"You are much like your mother I can tell- yes, let's try... this one." He pulled a handsome red wand out of its box and handed it to her. "Give it a- no, never mind." He snatched the wand back and turned back around to the shelves. "Here, try this one."

The process continued like this for three more wands before: "I suppose we can try this one," Mr Ollivander said, "A most unusual pairing. Alder and unicorn hair, 12 1/2 inches, unyielding." He placed the wand in Alice out stretched hand, looking excited. Immediately, light blue sparks erupted out of the tip of the wand.

While the adults cheered for us, Alice shot me a look over her shoulder, and slightly inclined her head to the sparks that were the exact colour of our tails. Maybe the two of us were looking too closely at it but, I had to question if it meant something.

"Alright, who is next?" Mr Ollivander said as Uncle Neville stepped up to pay for Alice's wand at the till. "Mr Weasley?"

Hugo nodded and move closer to the counter.

Hugo's wand choosing didn't take nearly as long as Alice's. On the third wand, a maple and dragon heart string number, the tip lit up and we could all feel the magic in the room as the wand practically hummed with joy.

"Yes, excellent, Mr Weasley. This wand will suit you quite well. Now," Mr. Ollivander said, turning to me. "Won't you come closer, my dear? That's it, now your wand arm would be...?"

"My left," I said, barely able to contain my excitement.

Mr Ollivander smiled. "Like your second brother. Albus Potter was chosen by a hornbeam wand. 13 1/2 inches, unicorn hair, springy. My father had a wand made of hornbeam, too, you know? James on the other hand, was chosen by a funny wand made of dogwood. Not very often I see one of those sold, mind you. I trust he is an excellent prankster? Let's see... perhaps a poplar wand will suit you..."

It took quite a while for Mr Ollivander to hand me the correct wand, but he didn't seem to mind ("Just like your father, from what my father told me. A very tricky customer!"). Wand after wand was rejected, and a sinking feeling began to form in my gut. What if I couldn't use a wand? Did wands even work for mermaids? No, Alice was chosen by a wand, so we must be able to use them.

It when on like this until finally: "Let's try this one, Miss Potter. Beech, 14 3/4 inches, unicorn hair, bendy. It is capable of a subtlety and artistry rarely seen in any other wood when it comes to spells"

He handed me the wand, and immediatly I knew that it was the one. A warm sensation crawled up my arm, and when I waved the wand, a shower of blue sparks glittered down around me, much like Alice's wand had done.

The adults clapped and within five minutes, all of us were walking out of the shop.

Upon reaching the Leaky Cauldron, Alice and I hugged each other and promised to write as soon as possible. The Weasley's one by one stepped into the Floo, and disappeared with a burst of green light.

"Mummy," I said, seeing my mother's bright red hair. "Look at my wand!"

Mum congratulated me as she walked us towards the Floo as well. "But you know, Bug," she said, handing the Floo powder to James as he stepped up to the fireplace. "You have to wait until you get to school before you use it."

I gave her a devilish grin as I took my own pinch of the emerald powder. "I can use it, though, if I don't get caught."

Before my mother could respond, I shouted, "Potter Manor!" I threw the powder into the fireplace and was whisked away in a whorl of flames.

**(A/N: Hey, readers! Hope you enjoyed my chapter! If you liked this installment of _Dates with the Giant Squid_, give it a like, and leave a comment! Additionally, I've got a poll up on my page about which house Lily Luna should be in. If you could complete it, that would be awesome. I'm curious to see where you all think she should be. Peace, Love, and Fins! CheckAlexa)**


	3. Mermaids Invade Hogwarts

**Disclaimer: I don't own **_**Harry Potter**_

Chapter 3: Mermaids Invade Hogwarts

James had been extremely obnoxious all morning- more so than usual.

"When you get off of the Hogwarts Express," he said as our family loaded into our car- me in the middle, of course. "The first thing they make you do is swim all the way across the Black Lake. The trick to not drowning, of course, is to outsmart the Giant Squid. But you and I both know how hydrophobic you are, so if you were to give me a small fee-"

"I'm not that thick, James. I know that we take boats across the lake. Teddy told me." I said with a huff, trying to concentrate on the potions book in front of me. I was learning about antidotes, to see if I could reverse the potion that had turned Alice and I into mermaids. So far, I hadn't had very much luck, as creating antidotes for complicated potions (like the one I had made) was, well, complicated.

"Yeah, well, did Teddy also tell you that you had to fight a charging-"

"The sorting hat does not charge anyone, James," I said, cutting him off. I was pretty sure that James glared at me in annoyance, but I continued to calmly read.

"Well, you better hope that you don't get put in Slytherin."

"And if I am sorted into Slytherin, will you refuse to acknowledge me?" I snapped, finally turning to look at him.

Albus snorted from his seat next to me. "Like he would acknowledge you when you are put in Ravenclaw. The only times he talks to me is to insult the our Quidditch team or when he needs help with something."

James leaned over me to hit Albus on the head. "Please, I just don't want another of my siblings on an opposing team. Especially Lily- we need a decent chaser for next year."

"That's enough, you two." Dad said, looking at my brothers in the rear-view mirror.

The ride to Kings Cross continued much like this, with James irritating Albus and me, then the two of them arguing before one of our parents shut them up. I had reopened my book at some point and continued my attempts in reading it.

When we arrived at the station, Daddy and James pulled the trunks out of boot and loaded them onto the trolleys that I had managed to procure with Mum and Albus. Albus grabbed the cages of his ferret and James' owl, and set them on top of their trunks.

"We can always get you a pet a Christmas time, Bug." Mum said as she saw me look sadly at my brother's animals.

"I am not going back into that store," I said stubbornly. "I was attacked by crazed fish."

Mum laughed at me and kissed my head.

"Nervous, Bug?" Daddy asked as I watched my brothers disappear through the barrier that concealed Platform 9 ¾.

I shrugged. In all honesty it wasn't I was afraid of running headlong into a brick wall- I had done it many times throughout my life at this point that it didn't really phase me. I hopped on top of my trunk and signalled for my father to push the trolley and me towards the barrier.

I blinked and the scene in front of me had changed. There was assortment of witches and wizards running about: one woman was straightening her daughter's robes; a man with a very large moustache was trying to wrestle an angry cat into its basket; a child that definitely was not school aged appeared to have hijacked an older sibling's broomstick and was zooming happily above the crowd as her parents yelled at her to come down.

"There's Hermione and Ron," Mum said, walking towards her brother and her best friend.

Hugo was standing next to Aunt Hermione and chattered excitedly about, well, Hogwarts.

"Is it true that there are centaurs in the Forbidden Forest?" I heard Hugo ask as we got close enough.

Aunt Hermione laughed. "There's a lot of things that live in the Forbidden Forest, Hugo. So I better not get a letter from your head of house telling me about any strolls through it, alright?"

Hugo didn't seem all to put out by this; instead, he launched into his next question.

I waved to Rosie who was already wearing her school robes- the blue lining and eagle patch signifying her place in Ravenclaw house. Albus hurried over to her and they ran off to find a friend.

"Do you see them, Daddy?" I asked, too short to see if the Longbottom family were on the platform.

"Not yet, Bug. We'll find them. How about we put your trunk on the train?" Dad replied, wheeling the trolley towards the train. "Hop off, or you'll have to lift the trunk yourself."

I did as instructed, and Daddy pulled out his wand and flicked it at the light blue trunk. It rose fluidly and Daddy walked down the train corridor, looking for an empty compartment.

"There we are," he said, after my luggage had been stowed away above the seats. "Are you sure you don't want Albus or James to ride with you?"

I grinned at my father. "No, I'll have Hugo and Alice."

"Then we should go find them," Dad replied with a smile.

When we got off the train, Dad went to help Uncle Ron put Hugo's trunk in with mine while I went in search of my best friend.

I wandered amongst the crowd, making sure to keep an eye on the clock that hung over the platform. The train left at exactly eleven, and I did not want to miss a ride on the Hogwarts Express my first year. I passed James who was waving his hands as he talked excitedly to a pretty girl with long red hair. By the way he smiled at her, I assumed the girl was Eva, the girl James had been infatuated with over the summer. I walked away quickly before he could notice me and give me a few more 'helpful' tips about Hogwarts.

I bumped into a few people that I knew from dinner parties my parents had forced me to attend, and greeted them politely, despite my impatience to find Alice. One of these people happened to be one Mrs. Malfoy, as she fussed over her son, much to the boy's chagrin.

Scorpius Malfoy was a tall boy for his age, rivalling the height of James, despite only being a third year. He had platinum blond hair that matched that of his father's, though he had inherited his mother's sweet demeanour. Scorpius happened to be best friends with Rose and Albus, so it wasn't uncommon to find the Malfoy heir wandering Potter Manor during school holidays.

"Oh, Miss Potter," Mrs Malfoy exclaimed as I waved to her. "I hear that you are starting school this year?"

"Yes, Mrs. Malfoy," I said. "I am very excited."

I pretended to listen to the dark haired women as she fondly remembered her own days at Hogwarts. I think she also mentioned a girl named Cecelia and her husband, but listening to small talk was never my forte.

"Mum," Scorpiuswhined. "Can you let me go? I need to find-"

"Your friends. Yes, of course. Just make sure to say goodbye to your Father and me before you leave." She said, waving the two of us off.

I fell into step next to Scorpius as we squeezed through the growing horde of families.

"Will you help me, Scor?" I asked, tugging on the sleeve of his robe. "I can't find Alice in this crowd."

Scorpius smiled down at me in amusement. "Sure." Opening his arms, Scorpius leaned over and picked me up and placed me on his shoulder so that I could see over the sea of heads. "Do you see her yet?"

I scanned the faces around me, looking for Alice's bright blonde locks. "No yet," I sighed. "Are you going to ask Rosie to Hogsmeade?"

Scorpius nearly dropped me in response to my question. "What?" He spluttered. A hint of pink coloured his pale skin.

"You know, my cousin?" I said, attempting to clarify. "Though I cannot imagine you know too many Rosie's."

"I know who you are talking about, Lily."

"Oh, so are you not going to Hogsmeade this year? I know Mummy and Daddy threatened to take away James' privileges after the exploding toilet last year."

"No, I'm going to Hogs-"

I had to huff in annoyance. Boys just didn't make any sense, sometimes. "Then what part of my question are you not understanding?"

Scorpius took a deep breath, as if to gather his thoughts. "Why would you assume that I would ask Rose to Hogsmeade?"

I looked down at my brother's friend curiously. "Is that not what you do when you fancy someone?" Before he could respond, I saw the face I had been looking for. I waved furiously to Alice. "Let me down, please." I said, as my best friend hurried towards me.

Scorpius did as instructed, and I scampered off towards my fellow mermaid.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~Dates with the Giant Squid~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

"Lily Luna Potter!" Alice exclaimed as the train thundered farther away from London. "What have I told you about saying things like that?"

I cocked my head to one side as I looked at my best friend. "I was just curious. He obviously-"

"Yes, but to ask him so bluntly is not appropriate," Alice said with a huff.

I had to roll my eyes at this. "You sound like my mother, Liss."

"And yet you still refuse to listen."

Hugo, who had been sitting there so quietly I actually forgotten his presence, finally spoke. "Wait, Scorpius fancies Rose?"

Alice and I turned our attention to my cousin. "Duh, Hugo." Alice said. "Even Lily figured it out, and she is the queen of the oblivious."

I nodded, "It's true- wait a minute."

Hugo looked even more confused. "But she's Rosie."

"Well spotted," I complemented. "With a mind like yours, you will definitely be a Ravenclaw."

Hugo either didn't hear me, or chose not to respond. "But," he said, "she's my sister."

Alice, ever the patient one, did even roll her eyes, "Yes, Hugo. Rose is your sister. Scorpius has a crush on your sister."

"But she's Rosie!" Hugo exclaimed, jumping to his feet. "That's so gross!"

I shrugged my shoulders. "If you have a problem with it, then I suggest you take it up with Scorpius himself. Only he would know what was wrong with himself."

Hugo nodded. "You know, I think I will." He made for the door of the compartment, and before either Alice or I realised what was happening, my cousin slid out into the corridor and out of sight.

Alice looked at me in horror. "Why would say that?" She yelled at me, jumping to her feet.

"I didn't think he would actually do it!" I replied, following her example. "Who knew Hugo had the guts to go talk to someone. He might still pull for Gryffindor yet!"

Alice grabbed my wrist and pulled me out of the compartment after her. "We have got to stop him. He'll embarrass both of them."

But finding my ginger-haired cousin proved easier said than done. The two of us got caught in a very large group of girls squealing with delight at seeing their friends for the first time since term had ended.

"Oh, is that Longbottom's little sister?" One whispered to her friend as we attempted to squeeze by. "It must be, she's got the same good looks."

"Frank is so fit," her friend responded. "I would love to get him in a broom-"

I had to laugh at Alice as she pretended to vomit.

When we finally caught up to Hugo, we found him banging on the door to his sister's compartment. "Rosie! Let me in, I need to talk to you about- oomph!"

"Very nice," Alice commented she helped me stand up.

Hugo didn't seem to care about my stellar tackling skills. "What was that for?" He demanded, springing to his feet and brushing off his robes.

"To stop you from making a fool out of yourself." I replied. "You obviously can't ask Scorpius about her, stupid."

"Why not?" Hugo demanded. "I think I have a right to-"

The compartment door slid open to reveal a bemused Albus. "Is everything alright?" He asked, pushing his glasses up farther onto his nose.

"Everything is fine!" I responded cheerfully. "Hugo just needed to ask something, but Alice and I will-"

Hugo pushed past my brother and entered the compartment, despite Alice and me trying to hold him back. Inside was Rose, Scorpius, and a girl their age with long black hair. "Rosie," he said. "Is it true that you-"

Alice reached forward and slapped her hand over Hugo's mouth. "It's nothing Rose, we're sorry for disturbing yo-ewwwww! He licked me!" She pushed Hugo to the floor and dashed away so that she could go pop a tail. Not that anyone knew this of course.

"She's developed an irrational fear of saliva over the past couple of years." I lied as the people in the compartment looked after my friend curiously. "Come on, Hugo, you need to apologise for any emotional trauma you may have caused her."

"But I still need to-"

"No," I sighed. "You really don't. Let's go." I grabbed hold of Hugo's ear and marched him out of the compartment. "Sorry for disturbing you!" I called over my shoulder.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~Dates with the Giant Squid~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

"First years! Follow me! Hurry up!"

Linking arms with Alice, we skipped over to the towering figure of one Rubeus Hagrid.

"Hey, Hagrid!" Alice said, waving to the half- giant.

Hagrid, who was nearly twice the height of my father, had wild black and grey hair and a scruffy looking beard that covered half of his face. When Hagrid saw us, his dark black eyes crinkled around the edges.

"Why hello there, Alice, Lily. The two of you are finally invading Hogwarts, then?"

I laughed as Alice disconnect from me to give the Care of Magical Creatures professor a hug. "We sure are!" We chatted with Hagrid while we waited for all of the other first years to gather, agreeing to have tea with him sometime later in the week (our schedules permitting) to tell him about our first days at Hogwarts.

"Do we have everybody? Good, follow me." He turned and we followed him down a narrow path were dozens of little wooden boats were floating in the water. "No more than four to a boat. Go on then."

Like Cornish pixies being released from a cage, Alice and I scrambled with the rest of the first years towards the boats (though the two of us were much more careful to not get wet). Hugo hopped into our boat, along with a dark skinned boy muggleborn who introduced himself as Bartholomew Saunders.

Besides the gorgeous sight of Hogwarts lit up against the night sky, the boat ride was, thankfully, uneventful- meaning our boat didn't flip over, even though Hugo kept bouncing with excitement.

Hagrid led us up the stone steps of Hogwarts and into a small chamber, where we were greeted by none other than Uncle Neville.

He winked at us before addressing the first years about the sorting process. I could hear the voices of the other students coming from what I could guess was the Great Hall. The Great Hall where I would be sorted in moments. I honestly didn't pay all that much attention to what Uncle Neville- Professor Longbottom- was saying.

We were led into the Great Hall next, where Albus and Rosie waved to me from the Ravenclaw table. James was standing up on a bench over by the Gryffindors, and when I made eye contact with him, he gave me a thumbs up. Alice's older brother and sister grinned from the Hufflepuff table, next to where my cousin Molly was sitting.

Bartholomew Saunders, looked like he might faint. I felt sort of light headed too, if I was to be honest. What if I didn't get sorted anywhere? What if mermaids were rejected from Hogwarts. Magical creatures weren't allowed to yield a wand, despite all of the work Aunt Hermione had done with the ministry- would the sorting hat expose me for what I was?

I searched for Alice's hand, and it felt like she was doing the same thing, because we quickly connected to each other and held on tight. While I didn't want to be separated from my best friend, I figured it was inevitable given our different personalities. I squeezed her hand tighter.

The sorting hat sang it's song about the differences between the four houses, then Professor Longbottom called up: "Abbot, Chloe!" who became the first Gryffindor of the year.

My fingers were growing pretty numb by the time Uncle Neville called, "Longbottom, Alice!" and Alice had to extract her hand from my death grip.

Alice walked up to the podium and sat on the wooden stool. She gave me a weak smile as the sorting hat dropped onto her head and fell down to cover her nose. There was a beat of silence before: "Hufflepuff!"

I cheered for my best friend as she ran to join her siblings. It wouldn't be too long before it was my turn. Within a few minutes, Professor Longbottom reached the 'P's

"Potter, Lily!"

I clenched my jaw and, forcing myself to smile, I marched up onto the podium, crossing my ankles as I sat down on the wooden stool.

_Hmmmm..._ I heard a voice say in my ear. _Very interesting..._

I thought about thanking the sorting hat for what I'm sure was a compliment to my ingenious mind, but then I remembered that it was just a hat.

_Just a hat, eh?_ It wheezed. _Not very much tact, I see. Very interesting..._

_How long had I been up here?_ I thought. Nobody had taken this long, I was certain.

The students began to mutter as the sorting hat its sweet time to sort me.

_Very intelligent... not one to follow the rules... fascinating... You're much like your mother, you know._

_So you'll sort me into Gryffindor?_ I asked hopefully. My stomach was growling with hunger.

_Good Godric, no! Now let's see... Cunning, yes... but social graces seem to be lacking_.

I seriously was considering chucking the hat into the Black Lake, if the hat was just going to insult me.

_ Too violent for Hufflepuff, that's for certain._

I heard the word _Hatstall_ down from the students, who were beginning to grow louder from impatience. I had heard of Hatstalls before- students who took longer than five minutes to be sorted- the headmistress, Professor McGonagall, had been one. I swallowed down my panic- I would be sorted.

_Excellent at controlling you emotions, though_. The hat said. _Your intelligence is tricky..._

_Seriously, Sorting Hat. Make up your mind._

_ Ravenclaw would be an excellent house for you... that's where your brother is..._

_ Perfect, put me there._

_ But... the potion you created... breaking the rules..._

_You know about the potion?_ I began apologising profusely for the violence I had thought of that was aimed at the old hat. _Please, please, you mustn't tell anyone about that._

_Very interesting... Where to put you?_

I pushed the brim of the sorting hat upwards so that I could peer out at the Great Hall. I felt like an animal at a zoo the way they looked at me.

I locked eyes with James. He smiled at me- not the sarcastic one he usually wore, either. He blew me a kiss with a wink, which was his way of encouraging me... at least I think that's what it meant. It was hard to tell with James.

I dropped my hand, and the sorting hat fell to cover my eyes again.

"Put me where I am needed." I muttered.

_In that case, _the hat whispered into my ear_. It better be..._ "SLYTHERIN!"

**(A/N: Where you expecting that? Yeah, you probably were. I am so sorry that I haven't updated in a couple of weeks. I dislocated my shoulder, so I was in a sling for a while. Anyways. I hope you enjoyed that chapter! If you want to see more of Dates with the Giant Squid, hit the Favourite/Follow button to subscribe. **_**Please review**_**, so I know if you liked the chapter. Reviews make me more motivated to write because I know that people are actually reading my story, just a hint if you want faster updates:) I promise that this won't be a 'Lily is a snake so we hate her' story. Sorry if you like those! -CheckAlexa)**


	4. Asylum

**Disclaimer: I don't own **_**Harry Potter**_

Chapter 4: Asylum

If Harry Potter's daughter being sorted into Slytherin (and a hat stall, no less) was a surprise to the students and staff of Hogwarts, it was nothing compared to what followed after "Yates, David!" was sorted into Hufflepuff.

Uncle Nev- _Professor Longbottom_ cleared his throat and called the name of the last standing first year: "Rossi, Cecilia!"

There was an increase in the amount of murmuring around the Great Hall as the girl, who most certainly was not eleven, stepped forward to place the sorting hat on her head. As she turned, and just before the hat fell over her face, I recognised this 'Cecilia' girl to be the one I had seen on the train earlier in the compartment with Albus, Rosie, and Scor.

Unlike me, it took the ragged old hat only moments to proclaim Cecilia a Ravenclaw. The whispers didn't stop as she handed the sorting hat back to Professor Longbottom and calmly walked to sit next to Rosie at the Ravenclaw table.

When Professor McGonagall stood up at the head table, a hush fell over the room, all eyes turned to the headmistress. "To our returning students: Welcome back. To our new students: Welcome to Hogwarts. I hope you had a lovely summer," She said in her thick Scottish brogue. "I won't keep you any longer, however, from your feast. Dig in!" And with that, she waved her hand, filling the golden platters on the table, and promptly sat down.

The boy next to me, who looked at least to be a fifth year, huffed. "She could have at least told us about that Rossi bird."

His friend mentioned something about her being fit, at that point, however, I turned my attention to the food in front of me, not exactly caring what teenage boys thought about Cecilia Rossi's body.

"So you are the last Potter kid, then?" The girl across from me asked as she scooped peas onto her plate. "I'm Ruby, by the way."

I smiled in greeting, then shrugged. "Unless my parents have another one of us locked up somewhere or get busy pretty soon, I suppose I am."

The girl nearly spit out the pumpkin juice that she was drinking. She looked up at me with a grin. "I think you'll fit in here pretty well here, Lily Potter."

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~Dates with the Giant Squid~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

At last, when the dessert disappeared, Professor McGonagall stood up and cleared her throat.

"Now that we all have full stomachs, I have a few announcements to make." She gave the entire Great Hall a stern look. "As always, the Forbidden Forest is just that- forbidden. No student is allowed to enter the forest without the accompaniment of a member of staff; something some of our older students-" she looked directly over at the Gryffindor table, "-should keep in mind." I saw James wave at the headmistress with a lazy grin.

"If you wish to try out for the House Quidditch team, sign-ups will be with you head of houses. First years are not permitted to try-out." There were quite a few groans from the people in my year- including myself. Even though I knew that first years weren't allowed to play on the house team (unless you were Dad, of course), I still held onto the hope that they had changed the rules.

The headmistress talked for a little while longer before finally she reached the thing all of the students had been waiting for:

"Now," Professor McGonagall said, standing up even straighter than before. "I am sure all of you noticed an anomaly of sorts during this evening's sorting ceremony."

Most of the students turned to look over at Cecilia Rossi, who had her hands folded in her lap as she looked straight ahead.

"This may become a common occurrence for the next few months. As many of you know, either from the _Daily Prophet_ or your parents, there have been political uprisings in France." She waited until all of the students were paying attention to her, before continuing. "As a result of this, many families have either left France and the surrounding areas, or have sent their children to other, more stable, parts of the world.

"Hogwarts is acting as an asylum for students who attend theBeauxbatons Academy of Magic. I am sure that all of you will help out these new students find their way around Hogwarts, and make them feel welcome. If you speak French, I encourage you to assist your new classmates, should they have difficulty understanding English." Professor McGonagall looked slowly looked around the Great Hall. "It is very likely that more students will be joining us within the next few months or even years." "But now, I am sure you are all very tired. Prefects, please lead your first years to your common rooms. You all will need a good night's rest if you want to be able to learn tomorrow!" She waved to us, and stepped off of the podium, officially ending her announcements. Ruby and the boy next to me (who had introduced himself as Todd sometime during dinner) hopped up and called for all first years Slytherins to follow after them. As we filed out of the Great Hall, Alice winked at me and we met at the large oak doors that lead into the entrance hall. "Breakfast tomorrow at the Hufflepuff table?" She asked linking arms with me. I shrugged. "Before we get our schedules, at least. I'll see you in the morning! Good luck!" Alice laughed as we quickly hugged and split in two different directions- me towards the dungeons, and her towards down a staircase that most likely led to the Hufflepuff common room. "Please, Potter. You're the one who will need it! Good night!"

And knowing my record, I would need all of the luck I could get.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~Dates with the Giant Squid~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

"I'm Regina Peaks," a girl with long blonde hair said the moment I stepped through the door of the first-year girls dormitory. She stuck out her hand, and pumped my hand up and down when I met her shake.

"I'm Lily-"

Regina cut me off. "Yes, I know who you are."

There was an awkward pause as I waited to see what Regina wanted. When it seemed that she wasn't going to say anything, I tried to step around her to where I saw my trunk had been laid at the foot of a four-poster. Regina however, stepped to block my path.

"Err... may I help you with something, Miss Peaks?" I ask.

Regina stared at me for a little longer before saying, "Is it true your parents are getting divorced?"

I tried to side step the blonde again, only to be blocked once more. "Judging by the position I found them in this morning before breakfast, I highly doubt it." No matter how old you get, seeing your parents snogging by the stove as the pancakes were burning, was one thing you wished you could obliviate from your mind.

"Really?" Regina asked, pulling a magazine from her robes. "Because that's not what _Witch Weekly_ said."

I had to laugh. "People actually believe that rubbish? I think a couple of months ago they said that I was being married off to a centaur to pay some debt my dad owed."

Judging by the look on Regina's face, she actually did believe the rubbish, so it was a good thing some of our other dorm mates arrived.

"Regina," a girl with long, light brown hair said. "I think she knows a bit more about her home life than a magazine."

Regina looked like she wanted to argue, but another voice from the doorway stopped whatever she was going to say. "Don't worry, Potter. Peaks here has a thing for your father. Or maybe you should worry, now that I think about it- she might just try to off your mum so that-"

A taller girl, maybe a good head taller than myself, stood behind us. She had a smug grin on her face, and she was clearly looking for a fight.

"Nott- who let you in? I wasn't aware that garbage was permitted in the Slytherin common rooms, let alone the dorms."

"Sure, Gina. After all, you had to get in somehow, right?"

"Okay!" I said aloud. "I'm exhausted. Busy day tomorrow! Good night!"

The girl with the light brown hair gave me a weak smile. We slipped around the arguing girls and got our shower kits from out trunks. I felt for the water with my mermaid-y powers, and slipped through a conjoining door into the bathroom.

Pulling out my toothbrush, I turned to the girl next to me, who was pulling her hair out of its braid. "Thanks for stepping in back there. You're Helena, right?" I tried to remember what her full name was from the sorting, but with my nervousness, my mind drew a blank in remembering the rest of it.

The girl smiled to me and shook my outstretched hand. "Yes."

"What's your surname, again?" I asked.

Helena shrugged. "Just Helena. No surname."

"Do you not have one? Who did they sort you as? I could have sworn they had a surname during the sorting." The words tumbled out of my mouth before I could apply a filter.

"I'm Helena." Helena said. "It's just Helena."

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~Dates with the Giant Squid~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

"Lily Luna Potter! You did not ask that poor girl that!" Alice screeched the next morning at breakfast.

"What? I was just-"

Alice wacked me over the head with the _Daily Prophet_ of the person sitting next to her. "That is incredibly insensitive. She obviously didn't want to talk about it."

"That's my little sister, for you, Alice." Albus said as he walked by us.

Rose, who was with him, laughed. "It must be a Weasley thing."

I scowled at the three people before me. "What? It was a valid question!"

Alice just buried her face in her hands with a groan as Albus and Rosie laughed.

Albus nudged me over and sat down between Alice and me. Alice obviously hadn't been expecting this because she squeaked and her face turned rather red.

"So, what is your first class today, Bug?" He asked, reaching for some toast.

I pulled my schedule out of my bag. "I start with History of Magic with the Gryffindors."

Albus leaned over me so he could read the parchment better. "No Herbology today, right? It's supposed to rain today, and I know how much you hate getting wet."

I smiled and kissed his cheek. "Have I ever told you that you are my favourite brother?"

Albus laughed and wrapped his arm around my neck, pulling me into a hug."Don't let the other two hear you say that, Buggy." He ruffled my hair before releasing me from the hug. Shoving the rest of his toast into his mouth, Albus stood up and joined Rosie who had been looking over Alice's schedule. Alice gave Albus a smile and shook her head when he asked her if she had Herbology as well.

Rosie gave Alice and me hugs. "We need to go talk to my twerp- I mean brother. Lunch at the Ravenclaw table?"

Alice grinned. "We'll be there."

"Why do you smile so much around my brother and Rosie?" I asked when the two had walked away. "Are you in love with one of them? I don't think Scor will be too happy with the competition."

My best friend turned to me and fixed me with her impressive glare. "Miss Potter, we need to work on your tact."

**(A/N: I hope you enjoyed this chapter! I realise that McGonagall had already left Hogwarts by the time Albus had arrived, but I'm changing that for the purposes of my story. Anyways, if you want to see more of **_**Dates with the Giant Squid**_**, hit the Favourite/Follow button to subscribe. Special thanks to the one person that reviewed (not that I counted, or anything...), you are amazing. **_**Please review**_**, so I know if you liked the chapter. Reviews make me more motivated to write because I know that people are actually reading my story, just a hint if you want faster updates :) I also apologise for the long break, because I am at uni. But the term is ending so I have more time to update now! -CheckAlexa)**


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